As the electronic technology developed, various electronic products are broadly implemented in various fields and accepted by consumers. Some of them become very important for the purpose of either working or entertainment, such as personal computer, laptop computer, personal digital assistant, smart phone, etc. In response to the increasing demands from users, manufacturers begin to integrate multiple functions in a single device in order to maintain the competitiveness of the products. However, power consumption significantly arises due to the complexity of the products and becomes a critical problem.
To reduce the power consumption of the electronic products and increase the performance and stand-by time, a typical solution is to adjust the power status of the electronic product according different situations. For example, a user may switch his computer to maximum performance status when he requires intense calculations such as 3D modeling, and to minimum performance status when he only requires simple functions such as instant messaging or email. Thus, the product may provide high performance or low power consumption depending on the user's needs.
However, as more and more components provide adjustable power status, the conventional mechanism to adjust and manage the power consumption fails to provide users with accurate information and efficient management. Only a simple display of different power status cannot fulfill the increasing needs for accurate and easy management of power consumption.
In addition, many electronic products are customizable for user to add or replace components therein in order to provide new features or enhancements. For example, a computer user may purchase components such as memory, hard disk drive, wireless adaptor, etc, from a third supplier and perform installation on his own. In this circumstance, the power consumption of the electronic product will be affected due to the additional components. The conventional mechanism also fails to reflect such changes as well as provide user accurate and enough information with regard to such changes.
Therefore, it is advantageous to provide a user-friendly and accurate device and method for managing power consumption.